The folks who pick Canada’s world junior team mandate that all the kids who want to wear the maple leaf have to be at Canada’s selection camp in December. They can’t ride in on a white horse to hopefully save the day at the last minute.

It didn’t use to be that way, however. Just ask Edmonton Oilers’ coach Tom Renney, who didn’t like what he saw with Canada’s entry in Fussen, Germany in 1992. Eric Lindros, who was playing junior in Oshawa, showed up just before the tournament started. Renney thought it was wrong with the other kids all in, trying to make the club.

“Eric came in on Dec. 23 with his mother,” said Renney.

“Things have changed since then. I had quite a lengthy debriefing with Murray Costello and the CAHA (Canadian Amateur Hockey Association) after that. I had eight pages of notes after they asked me to put something together,” said Renney.

So the change is you have to be at the selection camp?

“Yup,” said Renney.

Is this the Tom Renney rule? “I wouldn’t call it that but I quietly take some credit for the players being there from start to finish,” he said.

**

Ales Hemsky wasn’t at Oilers’ practice Wednesday. No, it’s not his shoulder. “He’s under the weather,” said Renney. “We’ve got some guys now with the sniffles and wanted to keep him away.” Sam Gagner, who missed Tuesday’s skate after Dan Cleary fell on him in the loss to Detroit Monday, took a regular turn at practice. He hurt his back in the Wings’ game but said he was fine to go against the Minnesota Wild Thursday. Ryan Whitney (foot, sprained knee), who also had Tuesday off, took the whole practice Wednesday. He’s still having some discomfort with his repaired foot, but he’s playing.

We encourage all readers to share their views on our articles and blog posts. We are committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion, so we ask you to avoid personal attacks, and please keep your comments relevant and respectful. If you encounter a comment that is abusive, click the “X” in the upper right corner of the comment box to report spam or abuse. We are using Facebook commenting. Visit our FAQ page for more information.